Blown off the lake...literally..

[Cook078]

Hi,  A few years ago we went to Delta Lake NY.  Ice was fine, but lotsa water on top, hard walking...We set out tipups, and then started tossing the football around...It was a beautiful day..blue sky, sunlight....All of the sudden it sounded like a train coming through...loud crashes of trees coming down and snapping...and then, one by one, each tipup, starting with the furthest and working to us, pulled up and out of the hole and down the lake...some of us made it to shore, I did'nt.  Off my feet and onto my back, whacking my head pretty good.  Down the lake I was going, pretty fast too.  It probably lasted a minute or so, felt like an eternity.  I guess it would'nt be so bad if I was familar with the lake..All I knew was the river (Mohawk??) ran through it, which meant open water somewhere!!
Anyway, when it was over, we gathered our thoughts and headed to the shore, down the lake, to try to get some of stuff...tipups, tackle boxes, hats, etc.  We did'nt find everything...and I have'nt been back since!!
I was wondering if anyone else ever had anything like this happen before, or is it just my luck??

Mike  

surviver of the mystery twister

[shmeltz]

can I get some of what you were on?

[Cook078]

Ahhh  thats not very nice...I wasn't "on" anything...but thankyou for your post...

Mike

[acsacmboy]

i think its called a micro burst. a sudden, wind that arives from the middle of nowhere with no warning. talk about a natural phenomenon.

[firsticerules]

i had something like that happen to me once my dad and cousin and i were out on a lake and there was no snow which ment it was slick! all of a sudden comes these howeling winds and nocking everyone over but i fell on the shanty. I rode the shanty and i was the sail! it was a fun day! we ended up fishing a different lake

[Icenutter]

I've had tip-ups blown out of the holes, but nothing like that!  You are very lucky.

[grumpymoe]

wheeeew  its when you get winds like that, to make me appreciate having a hardwalled shanty with a floor and thick skids. the only problem would be not having a windshield and headlights to see where were going  

[bigredonice]

My father and i had a very similar thing happen about 10 years ago, when fishing lake champlain....it was a beautiful, cold day, no wind....all off the sudden there was a roaring sound from the mountain behind us, and all of the sudden the wind was blowing a steady 50mph+, it lasted for about 30 seconds, and then it was over...luckily we were in our truck.

[frozen fingers]

It happened on ONEIDA LAKE about 25 years ago [I can get the actual date if anybody is interested,i keep a diary],it had been raining, The wind came up and everthing started to slide towards the eastern shore. First pails,then sleds with their contents spilling out,and then people.I saw more than one guy lying on the ice with his arm in the hole hanging on.One guy`s face was bloody as he was hanging on. This happened in Cleveland[north shore]. The fire alarm sounded and snowmobilers came out and recused everyone. I was the last one off because i had ice cleats on and kept sitting.The all morning rain made the ice smooth and slick. Everyone went to sylvan beach area to retrieve their equipment.

[shark]

I think acsacmboy is right , Micro burst, Ive been in 2 of them, Kind of hairy.

 Shark

[pigpen]

Ive been in that situation, a group of us were night fishing on the ice on a small lake in Central PA about 7 years ago.  It was very calm, and not too cold when all of the sudden we heard what sounded like a train on the next ridge, then we could hear the trees breaking and crashing down, then a blast of warm air came in, like 15 degrees warmer, and literally knocked us off our feet/buckets, then came the RAIN, it must have dumped a half inch in like 15 minutes.  Our lantern went out, the ice stared heaving and cracking, we made it to shore, but lost alot of gear, it was literally blowing bluegills off the ice and out of site in a heartbeat.  Ive never been that scared before, especially since we were a ways from the car.  When we finally made it off the ice, the look in my buddies faces was something I'll never forget, one of them couldnt even speak.  Weird stuff, never heard of anything like it before that happened, at least not in the mmiddle of winter

[IceKing]

two or three years ago I was bowhunting south of Otisco Lake when it started to drizzle. Then I heard a sound like a freight train. I knew this was impossible because there ar eno train tracks in the Otisco Valley. I thought maybe it was a tractor trailer coming down Otisco Valley Road. All of the sudden, I realized the noise was wind. I was about 15 feet up and the treees were swaying violently. I was so scared that I was grabbing the trunk of the tree and was going to slide down the tree to get out of it as fgast as I could, rather than climb down with the tree stand (climber-type) when I got up enough nerve to let go of the tree trunk and climb out with the stand, i had to litterally run out of the woods because fo the falling limbs. I was petrified. I gotta believe it was a fast moving front, as it brought wind and rain.

[Cook078]

WOW,  I sure am glad that I am not the only one to have this happen!!  Also a good reminder that you just NEVER know....I am glad that noone got hurt...except for maybe a little pride...But it sure is amazing...good ole Mother Nature...always gotta test us!!!
Mike

[fishercat]

There are cold fronts that are that strong and can do every thing that was described. It is worth it to have a  Weather Service Radio on your person when there is a possibility of severe weather.

[bigstyk1]

Having ice fished for over 14 years in several states and on countless lakes, I was fortunate enough to have dodged any similar situations.  However two days ago, after convincing my girlfriend that ice fishing was essentially safe, (at least in the company of an experienced hard-water angler), we experienced an elightening, (and unforgettable), incident.  The ice was clear, (free of snow), and sported a thin layer of water on its surface.  The morning temp was a bit chilly for my hun so up went the ice shanty.  The weather report indicated a chance for moderate wind later in the afternoon but the excellent fishing erased any concerns.  Late in the morning a sudden gust of wind sent our shelter and us on a wild and chaotic ride totaling three hundred yards at break-neck speed!!  It was @#$$'$ over elbows as I tried to get the heater turned off, foot through the trap door in an attempt to slow the shelter, and both zippered doors opened!  We stopped temporarily before we dashed another 50 yards!  Finally got the tent partially collapsed and stopped!  Needless to say the trip was over!  Heck of a way to introduce your special someone to the great sport of ice fishing!!  I'll be purchasing some ice-anchors for the ol' Shappell soon!!!!!

[Turkeyhunter10ga]

Last Sunday , my buddy had to chase his a little bit as we were drilling holes. i made an anchor system for mine and was already in place, as i saw him take off to chase his while i was drilling my holes a gust of wind came up and opened mine up. Whack , right across the back of my neck w/ the front bar of the shanty. Got a lump on my neck , a headache and a bent bar on the shanty.  Isnt this a great hobby we have.

[BuckShotJon]

Micro burst are bad news for sure. Almost like a Tornado except there is no swirl. But just as powerful as a Tornado in many cases. They usually leave a thin path of destruction a couple hundred yards wide. Bad bad news!


A friend and I were fishing Sodus a couple years ago and the ice was very slick. We are usually the first ones on the ice around 5:00 or 5:30. So we get out there and there is a guy on the west side of the bay in a shanty. All of a sudden the wind picks up and the guy is blown across the bay a good half mile. That shanty was moving fast! We were almost crying with laughter and then the person never came out. We then started to worry a bit and started walking over that way. We thought either the shanty was abondoned or the person got hurt/heart attack, etc.. All of a sudden a guy comes out for about a minute and goes back in. We started to laugh again knowing he was ok.

Then a little later that morning we are sitting in our shanty and I have a flag go up. So I get out and start towards the flag when I hear my friend screaming my name. I turn and look and he is inside the shanty and its moving fast and picking up speed. I had to full out sprint to catch the shanty. We eneded up tying it to the ice. I still laugh to this day about how my buddy was screaming so loud, we laughed for hours after the fact together.

Jon